Detention
by Apple with a touch of pear
Summary: Lily warms up to James for the first time, if just a little. OneShot


James had always had a problem keeping his ego in check, and Lily her temper, so when the two locked eyes in detention, they both knew they were never going to be able to clean the trophies that had been won in the long history of Hogwarts in peace.

James sauntered over to Lily and Slughorn, who was fussing over Lily like a mother, and with a cocky smile, drawled; "When are we going to start? I'd like to get this over with, I have people to meet.."

"We were waiting for you, Potter." Lily snapped. "If you're pressed for time, I suggest you show up on time."

James grinned and held his hands up in the air next to his head in surrender. "I'm sorry, Evans. I didn't know you wanted to spend time with me that badly."

Lily had the urge to throw something at his head, preferably one of the larger trophies that were established further back in the chamber. Maybe she could lure him there when Slughorn left so she could knock his brains in to her content.

"Not in a million years, Potter." She bit his name and spat it out like it was a curse word, but instead of being offended like a normal person would be, James was still laughing, his eyes twinkling behind his glasses. Lily would have paid all the money in the world for the chance to hex that smile off his face once and for all. The problem was, every time she tried, it was still plastered there, like James had strapped it to his face with spel-o-tape just to piss her off.

Slughorn excused himself after telling them their rather obvious punishment. Clean the Trophy room the muggle way. Lily imagined that James must have done that often enough to know all the trophies by heart.

When the two of them were left alone, Lily, sick of the sight of James already, suggested she's start in the back and that they'd make their way to the middle. That way, they wouldn't get in each others way.

She made her way to the back and for a few blessedly peaceful minutes, she worked in peace. That was, until she stopped hearing James' musical whistle and the splashing of soap behind her. Lily stood up and smoothed her skirt down.

"I'd better not find you slacking off, Potter," she muttered to herself. She turned and, clear as day, James was sitting with his back against the wall, slacking off.

"Potter." Lily's eyes flashed as she stalked towards him. He was reading a piece of parchment and paid her no attention. She crossed her arms as she loomed over him, ready to attack his throat. "Potter." She said again. He pissed her off. He pissed her off so much that it was hard to believe that there was someone who could have such an effect on her.

He didn't look up and mentioned for her to be silent. She snapped and tore the piece of parchment out of his hands.

"Don't you go and shush me, Potter." She shouted."I am not going to do all the work while you sit here reading a love letter from one of your illiterate girlfriends, God knows what they see in you. I don't want to be kept here any longer than necessary so if you can stop being such a selfish prick for once and try to put some effort into your chores instead of reading this," She threw the parchment at him, and only then did she notice that it wasn't a letter at all. The confused bundle of lines weren't anything like letters.

"Why were you laughing at a map?" Lily asked, dumbstruck.

James rubbed his neck and looked embarrassed - still smiling. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

Lily raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms again.

"Okay you would believe me, but you would also tell on me so I think it's in my best interest not to tell you anything."

"I really don't think your health would agree, Potter," Lily said.

"Oh, you wouldn't hurt me," James dismissed.

"The last time you said that, you had to hold that piece of dragon meat against your eye for six hours." Lily said.

"I'm sure that was an accident." James said. Lily was so close to wiping that smile of his face. how she hated that self-assured smile and how she was unable to hurt him in any way because of it.

Lily grabbed the map from him again and inspected it with squinted eyes.

"Is this Hogwarts?" She asked as her eyes fell on the small letters written next to the great square in the middle of the map; "The great Hall".

James didn't answer, but Lily didn't care. She looked over the map and saw all the little details added. The small footprints that were moving. She even saw that the bathroom on the first floor was dubbed, Moaning Myrtle's Quarters. She looked suspiciously at James.

"How did you get this?" she asked, "I didn't even knew something like this existed."

"I made it," he said, and went through his hair, messing it up even worse.

"Who did you steal it from?" She asked, glaring again. "Dumbledore?"

"What, no." James said, indignant. Lily stared in shock as his smile disappeared. "Do you really think I would steal something from Dumbledore to impress you? I am not that desperate. I made it, with Padfoot and Moony. Eve wormtail tried to help but he wasn't much use."

"I never said you did it to impress me," Lily said.

And the smile was back. "But I did, didn't I?" He said cockily. "Not everyone can make something like this, and you know it. It requires a whole system of spells - Moony thought that up - and then experienced wizards who perform them."

"You brought it here so you could show it off," Lily said.

James chuckled. "Oh Lily," he said, "always thinking I do everything for you. I was simply confirming that the prank on Katie Springs went well. She spurned Sirius again, you see."

"You're a twat." Lily said, her eyes still glued to the map. "I am going to report that to professor Slughorn."

"Even after I shared my greatest, most impressive secret with you?" James asked, nodding to the map. "It's one of a kind, you know. I don't show this to just anyone."

"I should confiscate this," Lily said, holding the map up. "I am sure it's against one rule or another, like invasion of privacy."

James looked at her with big eyes. "You wouldn't." He said.

"I would." Lily answered, still absorbing the information that the map provided. "Dumbledore might even be able to use this in the war."

"But.. But…" James sputtered. "I trusted you with the secret."

"And that was a mistake."

"You'll get Moony in trouble." James tried.

"He shouldn't have been so stupid as to make this map." Lily said, shaking her head slightly. "Or to trust you with it. Why in Merlin's name did you think it a good idea to tell me about this?"

His ears turned red, but his self-assured smile settled on his lips. "Because I like you."

Lily threw the map back at him. "Keep your map." She said as she turned back to her side of the trophy room. "Do what you want. Just stop bothering me."

Her cheeks had burned up. His chuckle told her that he had noticed it, and she had the feeling he would not listen to her. She wasn't as sure as she had been a minute before that she wanted him to.


End file.
